Puerto Rico's governor: Latest charges are bogus, too

August 21, 2008|By Jeannette Rivera-lyles, Sentinel Staff Writer

As calls for his resignation grew louder, Puerto Rico Gov. Anibal Acevedo VilM-a said Wednesday that he will not quit his post and will seek re-election in the face of five federal charges filed against him Tuesday.

News of the governor's latest legal problems elicited strong reactions throughout Central Florida, home to almost 250,000 Puerto Ricans.

"Whether we like it or not, this is the story about Puerto Rico that news outlets in the states are playing," said Carlos PM-irez Velez, an attorney who worked closely with Acevedo VilM-a as he began his political career.

This brings to 24 the number of charges Acevedo VilM-a faces. The first 19 were filed in March.

The charges stem from a three-year investigation that looked into his campaign finances and whether the governor favored some campaign donors with public contracts. The five counts filed late Tuesday accuse Acevedo VilM-a of electronic fraud and money laundering. Each charge carries up to a 20-year jail sentence.

As he did after the first charges against him were brought up, Acevedo VilM-a insisted he is the victim of a political vendetta.

"I have never engaged in an illegal act," he said. "I have never solicited a donation in exchange for government contracts and have never allowed the misuse of public money."

The governor maintains his legal problems are part of a long-standing rift between him and the U.S. Justice Department in San Juan. Among other things, the Puerto Rico government, under Acevedo VilM-a's leadership, sued the department over its handling of the 2005 FBI killing of Filiberto Ojeda, a fugitive and leader of an armed fringe nationalist group. The government questioned whether the use of deadly force against Ojeda was necessary.

PM-irez argued that the timing of the events is suspicious.

"Why wait until 78 days before the elections to file charges from an investigation that has been going on for three years?" PM-irez said. "This seems to play perfectly into the hands of the opposition party."

Riley HernM-andez, a Kissimmee teacher whose family lives on the island, said the governor's legal woes are unfortunate for the entire Puerto Rican community.

"It further contributes to the pessimistic mood among us," HernM-andez said. "The Puerto Rican economy has tanked, crime continues to be out of control, and now Puerto Ricans have a man with 24 federal charges among their choices for governor."